


Gravity

by librarybooks



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Angst, Eventual Relationships, Everything Will Be Explained, M/M, Major Character Injury, cliffhanger oneshot to kick it off, ending seems angsty but will be resolved in the series ok, it's not hero school but if you like bnha you might like this?, kinda like a mafia war?, nobody dies don't worry, recently edited and reposted!, there's some discrimination based on ability, to become part of a series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-06-20 16:05:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15537888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/librarybooks/pseuds/librarybooks
Summary: Hinata Shouyou, a superhero in training, wants to change the world.Learning the ropes at hero school is no easy task, but to become a champion, he’ll do it. There's only one or two problems- the hero divisions have a hidden agenda for their new recruits, and Hinata's faction-assigned partner is a tyrant.Or: Hinata is a young superhero who just wants to do good, but Kageyama and the other factions stand in his way.





	Gravity

_He was human. He came into the world as all others do, and he grew as all children grow, all scuffed sneakers and scraped knees as he climbed his way towards adulthood._

_It began in his adolescence, and it started with a light. A blinding light, shining through the darkest crevices of humanity’s shell, exploding outward and becoming something_ other. _It was then when the world changed._

_What is he?_

_The doctors didn’t know. There were no specialists for this, for shining, metallic skin, hardened like steel. Where did it come from?_

_It could hardly be called a ‘skin condition;’ it was so much more than that._

_He was impenetrable. Skin that can’t be scratched, a body that cannot be pierced- a God, perhaps, they said; or maybe he was an alien, had been all along, an otherworldly being. But no, he assured them: he was a human. He was born here, just a human, a person that shone with a light so bright and abilities so beyond our realm of comprehension that despite his protests, he was still worshipped as a deity, or scorned as a freak._

_But then he was no longer alone._

_The children began to change, and with them, the world. Coming into abilities in adolescence, they developed powers far beyond what was once dismissed as fantasy. There were people who could fly, people who were born with cat eyes, people who could dive into your brain and pick it apart bit, by bit, by bit._

_But they were just human, and with great power comes great responsibility. And just as there are those who want to be heroes, there are just as many who wish for the opposite._

_The governments had to make a decision. The world was changing, and if they didn’t keep up, they’d be lost along the way. There would be anarchy, there would be blood._

_They made a choice, built a system. When a young super came into their powers- if they had any- they would be sent to study, to train, to become an upstanding citizen. If they were lucky, in the process, they might become an exemplary hero._

_But life has a funny way of changing things around, and humans are bright, mischievous, manipulative; ideals don’t always come to fruition, and things don’t always work out as they’re planned._

**.  .  .**

Shouyou felt, rather than heard, the footsteps thundering down the hall. The ground itself seemed to vibrate; the debris strewn across the floor trembling with the steady rumble of boots moving in perfect time, a military march of the damned.

The troop’s exact location was difficult to pinpoint, but they were close.

A wave of anxiety rose within Shouyou’s chest, threatening to crash and overtake him. He swallowed the fear down, urged himself to breathe, to divert his attention between Kageyama’s back and the door. _Focus. Breathe. Focus._

His partner was sprawled unceremoniously on the floor, sifting through box after box in search of their objective. The warehouse was large, albeit stocked fully with shipping containers, and Kageyama had still somehow managed to dirty it through his careless scavenging. Shouyou considered warning him to hide the evidence of their rummaging, but it would likely just piss his partner off.

Not that it mattered. The soldiers knew they were here, anyway- had known, if their well-planned ambush was to be considered.

It was supposed to be a fairly simple operation, infiltration and retrieval- get in, grab the object of interest, whatever it was, and get _out_ \- but the mission had been compromised from the start. Somehow, the moment they’d set foot in enemy territory, news of their task force had spread. Instead of withdrawing from the premises like a sane group of people, their team had scattered.

Now, since they had decided to proceed with the operation, they were backed into a corner, the clock was ticking, and Kageyama had already been raiding the boxes for so _long_ …

 _Is this even the right place?_ Shouyou tugged absently at his hair, unkempt and ruddy in the dull light. _We’ve been given such vague intel... How does Kageyama know that what we need is even here?_

Their first skirmish with the opposing troop had been less than ideal. Accompanied by his newly-acquired scrapes and bruises, Shouyou’s ever-present doubt snatched him by the nape of his neck. _Am I not cut out for hero-work, after all?_

The idea dropped like an unpleasant weight in his stomach. He dutifully decided to ignore it.

A _boom_ rattled the earth, and Shouyou shook himself to full attention. Fire exploded outside the windows, shattering glass, and the flames rose- they licked and smoldered along the structural beams of the warehouse. The walls were already stripped and littered with gunshots; Shouyou had a sneaking suspicion that their attackers hoped that there wouldn’t be a struggle by the time they arrived.

Heroes, fledgling or not, had to be taken seriously, after all.

Even without the incessant attacks, the whole building was unstable, its beams rife with dry rot and rust. It was coming down any second, and Kageyama had to _hurry_ -.

The shriek of twisting metal raised the hairs on the back of Shouyou’s neck, and with a whiplash-inducing glance, he confirmed his worst suspicions. The warehouse itself seemed to groan as the roof caved, verging on collapse. The redhead screamed for his partner- “Kageyama! Move!”- as he careened to the right, narrowly dodging the first chunk of sheet metal that impaled itself where he’d been standing seconds before.

There was a moment of silence, as if the building was standing vigil for its fallen soldier. A shard of night sky now pierced the roof, the promise of near freedom looming like a taunt. It was black and cloudless; the stars obscured by smoke. There was no solace to be found in that dark void.

Shouyou released a heavy breath, and from behind him came Kageyama’s disjointed voice- “What the hell…?”

Shouyou turned to the source. “The warehouse is coming down,” He raked his fingers through his hair, now dusted with debris. “We need to get out of here.”

“After- only after I find this-,”

Kageyama was interrupted by the sickening _snap_ of cracking wood as the structural beams finally broke, releasing a barrage of roughly shorn stakes to the ground below.

Shouyou retained enough sense of self-preservation to activate his ability just as the pieces began to fall, slapping his palm to the concrete and closing his eyes. A surge of power engulfed him, rushing, _screaming_ through his veins like liquid fire, and a puddle of scarlet erupted from beneath Shouyou’s hand.

The puddle gathered around his palm, small at first, but expanding quickly with the energy Shouyou expended. As it grew, it deepened in color, glaring less like a sin and more like spilled wine. It glittered in the low light, winking, as if it housed galaxies of its own and knew none could reach them.

Large chunks of sheet metal and wood fell from the ceiling, giant weapons of blunt-force trauma descending towards the earth like meteors. A queasy sort of feeling shot through Shouyou’s gut, and he squeezed his eyes shut tighter, pushing more energy into the field.

With another surge of power, the puddle exploded outwards, spreading across the floor like a bloodstain from some great beast.

The debris was falling...

….falling...

And then it wasn’t.

It stopped in mid-air, detritus floating in its own solar system, hovering just above Shouyou’s head as if he were being heckled by a poltergeist. The redhead leaned back on his haunches, heaving a shuddering sigh of relief. Using his antigravity field was taxing, and he couldn’t always count on their success, especially when he created large ones.

Usually they worked, though. They worked when it mattered, at least.

Shouyou allowed himself a brief reprieve, gathering his bearings as the full weight of their duty crashed down on him.

This was meant to be their first “real” mission, essentially a training exercise. Considering the circumstances of the mission, it didn’t really make any sense. How had everything gone so astronomically _wrong_?

They wouldn’t send a poorly-matched team of rookie supers into such an operation with vague details- an operation that was clearly a total bust. Get in, grab whatever, get out- easy. Except… It wasn’t, for multiple reasons, chief among them being Kageyama’s stubbornness.

 _“I only work with those I find essential to success.”_ He’d said.

What a load of shit. They’d been partnered anyway, and it had led to nothing but cuts and bruises and a totally fucked up mission. Even just thinking of his partner’s biting words sent Shouyou into a red haze.

And because Kageyama was a bastard who didn’t yet trust him, Shouyou didn’t even know what they were retrieving; therefore he couldn’t help him retrieve it, and was stuck doing virtually nothing while bullets rattled against their only defense, a fast-weakening door.

Now in pursuit of some unknown object, Kageyama didn’t want to clear the premises, despite the obvious danger.

Oh, Shouyou wanted strangle him.

Not in actuality. Maybe.

But it didn’t matter; Shouyou didn’t have to threaten Kageyama. In their current situation, escaping with their lives was already a stretch.

Everyone had assured them that their first mission would be simple. An easy operation with no real danger, to ease the freshmen supers onto the playing field.

The warehouse roof creaked again, yearning to spill sheets of metal onto the unsuspecting boys below. Shouto swallowed.

_Yeah. “Easy.”_

The redhead was left entirely in the dark about how this operation had spun so phenomenally out of control. It didn’t make sense. So, why? Where did things go south? The intel must’ve been wrong, or there was a miscommunication.

Shouyou didn’t want to consider the only other option: that it had been a set-up from the start.

No. That wasn’t possible. What did other factions have to gain from freshmen supers, anyway? Shouyou was loathe to admit it, but they were still new; they barely knew what they were doing, so what was the point of-

The thump of approaching footsteps jerked the redhead out of his reverie. He stumbled to his feet.

“Kageyama..!” Shouyou’s voice felt raw, and he tripped, once, twice, scanning the perimeter for his partner. His movements were sluggish, slowed by the customary tiredness that accompanied each use of his gravitational field. “Kageyama, are you..?”

A grunt alerted him to his partner’s presence on his right, where Kageyama sat, blissfully ignorant of the warped ceiling as he shifted through the last few containers scattered across the floor.

“Are- are you serious?” Shouyou staggered over, casting a hand back at the floating mess behind him. Bits of the warehouse still crumbled and fell from what remained of the ceiling, joining the hovering wasteland below. With the additional debris, his antigravity field shifted to a deeper color, already beginning to falter. “Hey, the roof is collapsing! I can’t hold it, let’s go!”

The darker of the two raised his hand in silent acknowledgment, but he continued digging, faster now, pausing only to grab another box. “Just wait.”

A not-unfamiliar coil of annoyance began worming in Shouyou’s gut. He threw his arms up in frustration. “Are you stupid? Get _up_ , listen, the intel was _wrong_ -.”

“Do you want to fail our first mission, dumbass?” Kageyama hurled back, his tone laced with scorn. The look he gave Shouyou was even more unpleasant than usual, curdled, as if he drank spoiled milk. “We have to retrieve it!”

“Retrieve _what_? If you’d tell me what it is, maybe I could help!” Shouyou’s voice grew strained. “If we keep going like this, we’re going to die and the mission will be compromised!”

“It’s an occupational hazard. If you weren’t prepared for it, you can leave.” Kageyama turned his attention back to the boxes. “Abandon the mission, do what you want. _I_ don’t plan on failing today.”

The coil in the pit of Shouyou’s stomach became a snake, and the noises surrounding him waned. The crackling of the fire became more subdued, the distant tromping of feet only a dull roar. He inevitably thought once more of Kageyama’s words from before they’d been thrown into this shithole, before he’d gotten a chance to prove his worth-

His mind clouded as it tumbled between _“only work with”_ and _“essential to success.”_

Shouyou didn’t care what Kageyama was insinuating. He was _not_ worthless.

Shouyou’s fists reflexively clenched. His nails pricked his palms, but the pain did little to ground him. His eyes flashed a dangerous, unnatural gold as his vision tunneled on his surly partner.

“I told you, you damn tyrant-,” When Shouyou stomped his foot, another patch of sparkling red antigravity erupted beneath his feet. Kageyama glanced at him, his expression almost bored, as Shouyou rose several feet in the air. “We were _set up. The intel was wrong!_ ”

Kageyama snorted. He wasn’t afraid; a floating teenage boy was nothing he couldn’t handle. “Don’t waste your energy on a temper tantrum-.”

He cut himself off as the stomping outside grew louder, before the chorus of steps halted in unison. The door to the warehouse was blown off of its hinges in an explosion of smoke and heat.

Shouyou whirled to face their attackers, taking his frustration with Kageyama and diverting it towards a new target. He braced himself against the sudden temperature, thrusting out his hand to halt another onslaught of shrapnel. The stray shards stopped in their tracks before shuddering and falling, harmless, to the floor.

The soldiers in the doorway were stark against the darkness outside, the whiteness of their uniforms marred only by soot and the telltale speckle of red. They raised their weapons so that they were level with their shoulders, and a firm, monotone voice rang out. “Stand down, or we’ll shoot.”

To their credit, the soldiers didn’t even blanch in the face of the solar system of detritus that now comprised the majority of the room.

A pit of uneasiness sunk in Shouyou’s gut. _They know we’re supers. They knew we were here, knew we were coming, they knew-_

“Hinata,” Kageyama passed him a glance. “Don’t react.”

“And do what then? Are you going to fix this situation by yourself?” A familiar prickle of exhaustion chipped at Shouyou’s energy reserves, but he ignored it. “I don’t think so.”

“Hinata, don’t!”

Shouyou pushed out his palms with a shout. His eyes were suns, radiating pure, unadulterated rage. The gravitational fields beneath him began expanding, converging into a giant puddle of shocking red.

The soldiers stepped back, pointedly cocking their weapons, but looking otherwise unfazed.

“Hinata…” Kageyama warned, raising himself to stand. With Shouyou levitating, Kageyama was only level with the smaller boy’s waist.

The darker of the two pointedly raised his hands to show he was unarmed, but his gaze remained on his partner.

“Stand do-,” the lead soldier repeated, but his warning was cut off with a grunt as he stumbled. The floor came rushing to greet him, but they never made contact.

As Shouyou released another surge of energy, the gravity in the room ceased to exist. Puddles of deep red covered the floor, creating the sickening illusion of a bloody battlefield. Everything in the vicinity was lifted off the ground- the troop of soldiers were raised into the air, squawking indignantly; shipping containers joined the already hovering debris from the collapsed roof, creating a wasteland of refuse. Kageyama gave a shout as his feet left the floor, stumbling backwards but never hitting the concrete. In the center of it all, Shouyou blazed.

His hands shook with the effort, and his stomach was beginning to ache. What was he doing? Antigravity wouldn’t stop the soldiers from shooting, and Shouyou could only misdirect so many bullets. At best, this was a distraction. At worst…

He bristled as he recognized that Kageyama was right. This was nothing but a temper tantrum.

In pursuit of heroism, was it even worth it? Was tolerating _this_ , the dragging exhaustion, something he’d always have to deal with? Why did he have to try so hard to prove that he was responsible with his powers, that he could exist alongside other people, _protect_ people, _why-_

“Dumbass!” Kageyama struggled to remain right side up as he hovered, his coordination long having left him. “Hinata, control yourself!”

“I’m- I’m in control,” Shouyou gritted his teeth, lifting his arms higher. The debris surrounding them rose in response. He made it this far- a distraction it was, then. “Don’t interrupt me.”

Kageyama’s eyes became slits. “You shrimpy moron-,” he raised his own hand in Shouyou’s direction. “I didn’t want to do this, but-,”

Before Kageyama could release his ability, another shot rang out. The taller boy registered something buzz past him, a hiss of pain, and the crack of splitting wood as what could’ve only been a bullet buried itself in the wall behind them. Shouyou dropped several feet in the air, a buoy in a storm.

Kageyama froze. “Hinata!”

Across the room, the soldiers were regrouping, attempting a formation despite their weightlessness. They fumbled with their weapons, latching onto each other, eyes steely and cold.

Shouyou still hovered- a sign that he was conscious, as his gravity fields didn’t falter- but his head was bowed as if in mourning, his right hand cradling his left arm. Kageyama shouted again, clawing towards him, trying to swim through the air to no avail. “Hinata!”

The redhead’s eyes tightened around the corners, squeezing shut, and his mouth pulled into a grimace. With visible effort, Shouyou blinked, looked at the soldiers, and then at Kageyama with an expression similar to surprise. He removed his hand from his arm.

Shouyou’s right palm was stained red. Kageyama fought down the swell of nausea that surged at the sight.

The gravity user clenched his fist, smiling tightly. His altitude dipped again, inching closer to the floor. “They almost got me.”

“What do you mean ‘almost,’ you idiot?” Kageyama spat, arms pinwheeling as he too shifted in Shouyou’s gravity field. “They _did_ get you! You’re injured! We need to get out of here!”

“Now you decide to listen to me,” Shouyou mumbled, shooting his partner a sideways glare. “Besides, it’s just a graze.” But with the strength ebbing from his limbs, he allowed himself to descend several feet, the asteroid belt of detritus dropping with him.

With a purposeful inhale, Shouyou concentrated on the field of antigravity beneath the soldiers. They struggled to stay centered, twisting aimlessly in the air, upside down and sideways.

Shouyou smiled. Perfect.

He released his hold on the field beneath the soldiers, and the puddle of red abruptly retreated, sending the troop crashing to the floor.

Another wave of weariness overtook the redhead. Shouyou hovered, feet grazing the ground, and stared at his hands.

Why did he have to prove that he could control himself before he could exist peacefully beside the general public?

This. This was why.

Shouyou didn’t register when his gravity field failed, everything else in the room falling to the ground with varying levels of damage. He didn’t register the grunt from Kageyama as his partner fell out of the air. He didn’t register the pain in his arm, or when the warehouse groaned again; he only glanced up when Kageyama appeared by his side, nudging him out of his stupor.

Only a few of the troop had been knocked out by the fall. In the face of the barrels of ten guns, Shouyou distantly knew that they were sort of doomed, but his eyes were bloodshot and his limbs were heavy, and he was just _so tired_.

“Can’t they die already?”

Kageyama snorted. “Shut up and get ready to fight.”

Shouyou tilted his head, eyes drooping as exhaustion seeped into his bones. “I just don’t understand.”

From what Shouyou could tell, there were two explanations for why he and his partner hadn’t been seized already. Either the soldiers were ordered only to use force when the need was dire, or they wanted to take the young supers alive.

Shouyou didn’t really like either option, to be taken - the idea of being kidnapped sent a shiver down his spine.

“Well then, Kageyama?” The redhead straightened somewhat, grasping at the last vestiges of energy running through his body. He called on his ability, urging it to create one more gravity field, just one- “What are you waiting for?”

“You have refused our orders,” the lead man in white began. “Do not exert your power, place your hands behind your head-.”

Kageyama didn’t have to touch them. The taller boy thrust out his hand, irate, as if he could throw his anger at their pursuers like a grenade. His voice was loud, demanding attention and obedience. “Shut up! Just- just be quiet!”

Kageyama continued to move his lips, but for Shouyou, silence fell.

It was a complete, oppressive silence, one that defied all logic; the crackling and snapping of fire outside disappeared, although flames still licked the windows- the popping gunfire outside ceased, but the shells still penetrated the walls. The world was rendered soundless, as if some god had become bored with their antics and pressed “mute,” on his universal remote control.

It was an ability that Shouyou didn’t entirely understand. To him, it looked as if Kageyama could manipulate the world as he wished it, which suited his partner’s holier-than-thou outlook just fine - but he knew that Kageyama was less in control of his powers than he would like to be.

As opposed to shutting down the natural world itself, it was more like he instead cut a couple wires within their brains and muted everyone’s functioning hearing.

And although Shouyou had seen this part of his power before, the feeling was the same as the first time- invasive, a bit terrifying and claustrophobic, as if he had been thrown into a soundproof chamber, locked up and screaming. Shouyou didn’t like the idea of Kageyama rooting around in is head in the first place, and each time the darker of the two used his ability, Shouyou was reminded of the unfortunate circumstances of their partnership.

Of all people in the known universe, why in the name of God was _Shouyou_ stuck with a mind weaver? He’d never have any privacy, ever.

As if on cue, Kageyama shot him a look that read, _Who would want to read your meaningless thoughts? Your brain is empty, anyway._

Shouyou turned away with a sharp huff. Just the fact that Kageyama seemed to know what he was thinking was enough evidence to prove he’d never find peace, not even in his own head.

As white noise slowly trickled back into Shouyou’s ears, he risked another glance at his partner. Kageyama’s blue gaze remained sharp on the soldiers, who clutched at their heads desperately. Shouyou didn’t know what he’d done differently to them, but they had felt it - oh, they had felt it.

Shouyou felt a brief pang of sympathy for the men in white as they fell to their knees, prone and bleeding from the ears. Kageyama would claim otherwise, but more often than not, his partner lost control, too.

With a shake of his head, Shouyou quickly stomped out that sympathy. He had a gunshot wound because of these men, after all.

He risked a glance at Kageyama, who was still moving his lips at the soldiers, still bent with their heads in their hands. Sound came back to Shouyou in pieces, a dull ringing accompanying the crackle of fire and the crash of debris, as if he had been in a blast zone and ruptured his eardrums.

Compared to the quiet, Kageyama’s voice was a sonic boom. He raised his palm towards the troop and hissed, “Get out! Go away! Tell your superiors that no one was here!”

With a visible shudder, the soldiers straightened, eyes glazed as they retained a loose formation. Blood trickled from their noses, dripping onto their uniforms in various states of disarray. Shouyou flinched as one raised his radio to his mouth.

The soldier blinked, once, twice, before hesitantly murmuring, “Building clear.”

As one, the troop turned away. The lead soldier glanced back, as if unsure, before leading the cavalry out of the building in tromping unison.

There was a moment of silence in the soldiers’ absence. Then: “You couldn’t have done that earlier?” Shouyou blinked, shoulders slumping. His head felt light, dizzy with blood loss and ability overuse.

Kageyama turned away with a grunt. He kicked at some of the debris strewn across the floor. “I was distracted.”

“‘Distracted’? For real?” Shouyou tried to project some frustration into his voice, but it came out as a sigh. “Whatever. It could’ve saved us a lot of trouble. But if they didn’t know before, they’ll definitely know that there’s a mind weaver here, now. Not very subtle, Kageyama.”

The taller boy whirled on his partner, jaw clenching and unclenching in frustration. “What did you expect me to do? It’s not my fault they started bleeding.”

Shouyou shrugged. “Technically, it is.”

Kageyama’s face grew stormy. “Listen, you two-foot piece of-.”

“We don’t have time for this.” Shouyou shoved past his partner, electing to avoid another argument. “Let’s just find the damn objective and get out of here.”

“It’s not here.” Kageyama glanced over his shoulder. “There’s got to be another warehouse.”

“Oh yeah?” Shouyou scoffed, crossing his arms. “And who tried to tell you that the intel was wrong before we were rudely interrupted?”

“Shut up, jackass!” Kageyama made as if to grab Shouyou by his collar, but the smaller boy scrambled away. “I just had to make sure!”

“I seriously doubt that whatever they want us to retrieve is worth more than the lives of two young supers! And stop calling me an ass!” Shouyou raised his voice, but it was drowned out as the warehouse released another groan. “Let’s get out of here. We’ll be crushed if we stay.”

Kageyama didn’t argue, for once, and after a quick final scan of the room, the supers tore out into the night.

The sky was dark, any celestial bodies they might’ve seen obscured by thick smoke. From the outside, the warehouse they had abandoned looked almost hospitable, if it weren’t for its crumbling exterior. Flames licked the walls, cinders hissing as they met the ground. Little sparks grew where they met the grass, quickly extinguished by whatever moisture remained in the ground. Anxiety prickled at Shouyou’s neck. The fire would spread soon.

He wondered about the other members of the Karasuno task force, and as the duo slunk into the alleyway of a neighboring building, he voiced his concerns.

“Hey,” the redhead huffed, crouching and keeping his voice low as a troop of white-clad soldiers passed their hiding spot. “Where do you think the rest of the team is?”

Kageyama didn’t even look at him, cautiously sticking his head out into the open to scan their surroundings. “Probably safer than we are.”

A pause. Then, “I think we should go to them.”

At that, Kageyama spared him a glance. “No.”

Shouyou recoiled as if slapped. He shook his head, mouth opening and closing like a fish. “Wha-.”

The taller boy squatted beside him. “We have a mission to complete. We’re not abandoning our post until we find what we’re looking for, or else this shitshow will have been for nothing.”

The redhead blinked, hackles rising. “Are you stupid?”

Kageyama’s brows slanted. “You’re the one who-.”

“I think the whole of Karasuno would agree that this,” Shouyou released a mirthless laugh, gesturing wildly with his hand. “ _Shitshow_ has already been for nothing! There’s nothing here!”

“You don’t know that.”

Amber eyes grew serious and dark. “Kageyama. _We. Were. Set. Up._ ”

Kageyama turned away. “Set up my ass! We’re here for a reason.”

“You-,” Shouyou stood quickly, stumbling as dizziness seized him, thrusting his head into space. He floated for a moment before he crashed into something solid. Two heavy hands landed on his shoulders.

“Hey! Hinata. Hey.”

The redhead blinked, the dark smudge before him wavering in and out of form until it solidified into Kageyama. His head swam as he murmured, “Yeah, Hinata. That’s me.”

Kageyama stared at the shorter boy sternly, eyes scanning Shouyou’s injured arm. Shouyou shifted under his gaze, jostling his wound. He winced.

“You’ve lost too much blood,” Kageyama’s tone became accusatory. “You said it was just a graze!”

“It _is_ a graze!” Shouyou decided not to spare his injured arm a glance. “For the love of God Kageyama, you’re the one who’s been preaching about ‘the importance of the mission!’”

“I didn’t realize-,” Kageyama grimaced. “Alright, come on. If we don’t see a warehouse on our way out, we’ll leave without the artifact.”

“Oh?” Shouyou allowed himself a smug smile. “Suddenly an aspiring hero is worth more than this artifact of yours?”

Kageyama dutifully ignored him, turning back towards where they’d seen the soldiers passing earlier. He scanned the area, noting the positions of other buildings and troops.

“Kageyama, I didn’t hear you right - did you say my life is worth more than-”

“Shut up, Hinata.”

“No, I want to hear you say it-”

“I said shut up!” Kageyama threw a hand back at the redhead, eliciting a surprised squawk from him. His eyes widened as his gaze fell on something out of Shouyou’s line of sight.

“What?” The redhead nudged his partner aside, scrambling on his tiptoes to see whatever his partner had noticed. “What do you see?”

“Dumbass!” Kageyama whispered, shoving Shouyou down before crouching himself. “Be quiet- there’s soldiers. They’ll hear you.”

Shouyou slapped Kageyama’s hands away but kept his mouth shut. He turned towards the direction his partner faced, shifting on his haunches to get a better look. If he twisted just the right way- there. A troop of men in white stood far off to their left, almost out of view.

The soldiers hadn’t noticed them. They were assembled in a loose ring, just outside of another warehouse opposite Shouyou and Kageyama. It was difficult to see between the limbs of many soldiers and cocked weapons, but in the center of their circle, a small figure was hunched on the ground.

They couldn’t see the figure’s face, but they were short; compared to the men around them, the person was clearly younger, similar in height to Shouyou himself. With the barrels of the soldiers’ guns tracking their every movement, the person moved slowly, raising their hands in surrender. As they stood, Shouyou stifled a gasp. The figure was dressed entirely in black, identical to the uniforms the redhead and his partner wore.

There was no one else it could be. Shouyou’s breathe caught in his throat. “Is… is that…?”

“Shut up,” Kageyama warning hiss came again, although his wide eyes betrayed his alarm. “We can’t do anything for him if we’re captured, too!”

“I can’t believe _he_ , of all people, got caught-,” Shouyou stumbled to his feet. “We can’t just- just sit back and let him be _taken-_!”

“They have guns. He can’t just run and hope for the best.”

Shouyou shifted on his haunches. “He totally can. He can outrun anything.”

Kageyama reached towards his partner, but the redhead scrambled away, leaning just a little too far out of the safety of the alleyway. “Hinata - stop it! It’s too risky, you can’t-”

The redhead risked a glance over his shoulder. Kageyama was fuming, grabbing for him, and if he grabbed him, pulled him out of the street, they might not see their teammate ever again-

There wasn’t a choice. The redhead nodded, as if agreeing with himself, and he made a decision. He stepped even further away from Kageyama. “I’ll distract them. I’m counting on you.”

Kageyama’s eyes widened further, his next words stuttered and vague. “Wha-what?! Are you stupid are something? Cut that shit out and come over here, we’ll just- just contact the rest of the strike team, and-”

But Shouyou was gone.

He was running, launching himself into the air with the elegance of a dancer. His mind was blank save for one thought only: that his teammate was in danger, his favorite mentor, his- “Hey!”

The soldiers startled, whirling on their new adversary. Some retained enough presence of mind to keep their guns trained on their current captive, who was staring, slack-jawed, at Shouyou.

The redhead opened a gravity field beneath him as he jumped again, narrowly dodging a stray bullet. “Nishinoya-senpai! Run!”

“Shouyou?!” Nishinoya - it was _definitely_ Nishinoya - dropped all pretenses of surrender at the appearance of his junior. “What the hell are you doing?!”

Shouyou executed a roundhouse kick, his foot meeting an unfortunate soldier’s jaw. The man crumpled. “Saving you!”

A grin split Nishinoya’s face. He threw his head back, releasing a belly-laugh that shook his entire frame. “That’s my favorite kouhai!”

As Shouyou aimed another kick at one of the men in formation, the soldiers shook themselves free of their alarm and grouped together tighter, clumping around Nishinoya like barnacles on a whale.

“Stand down!” The lead soldier screamed, keeping his weapon trained on the redhead but otherwise not making any move to attack. “We need them alive. Stand down. Do _not_ shoot.”

“How do you expect to restrain them?” One of the more panicked soldiers fiddled with his gun, finger dangerously close to the trigger. “He’ll take us down if we don’t act, captain!”

“Are you questioning my commands? We have orders.” The captain gritted his teeth. “Do _not_ shoot.”

“Noya-senpai!” Shouyou’s throat was raw, blood sheeting down his arm. He dropped out of the air like a stone, landing roughly on his feet. “ _Run._ ”

The men in white crowded Nishinoya further, one lowering his weapon to grab his wrists and restrain him. Nishinoya gave them a cursory glance over his shoulder, shrugging at the cuffs the soldier had produced.

“Well, it’s been fun, guys.” In a blink, Nishinoya ripped his arms out of their grip. He cracked his knuckles, and a flash of lightning danced across his skin. “But my underclassman needs me, and since I’m a great senpai, I have places to be.”

Then Noya was gone, the only evidence of his presence left with a few scattered soldiers, pushed aside like cobwebs, and scorch marks on the pavement.

As a blur of color sped towards him, Shouyou tried to mentally prepare himself - he really did, squaring his feet and squeezing his eyes shut - but nothing could ever prepare him for Nishinoya’s speed. Although he braced for the sudden lurch of his internal organs as he was seized and unceremoniously hoisted onto his smaller senpai’s shoulder, motion sickness still threatened to expel the contents of his stomach. Shouyou covered his mouth with a groan.

As their landscape blurred, Nishinoya laughed, patting his kouhai as well as he could with one hand. “Good to see you’re alright, Shouyou!”

Shouyou’s only response was an ill-concealed gag.

“Try to hold it in, kid.” Noya shifted the redhead to fit more comfortably on his shoulder. “Where’s Kageyama?”

“Good question,” Shouyou mumbled. The knowledge that his partner hadn’t even tried to participate in his mini rescue mission settled uncomfortably in his gut. He pointed vaguely. “I left him in that alley.”

“Left him?” Noya sounded alarmed. “Is he injured?”

“No.” Shouyou laughed weakly. “That’s me.”

“Alright, Shouyou. Let’s put you down.”

By the time Nishinoya set him down in the alley he had left, Shouyou felt like an eternity had passed. Shifting between phases of consciousness, the redhead struggled to stay awake. His gut clenched, and he resisted the urge to spill his lunch as the dizziness wore off. Traveling at the speed of sound wasn’t good for his stomach.

Shouyou vaguely registered people speaking. He thought he knew them, maybe, but his faculties were unable to assign faces to the voices.

“...The rest of the team?”

“Don’t know. I lost Ryuu back in warehouse five, when the soldiers stormed in. He told me to run. I should’ve grabbed him, God-”

“He’s fine. He’s got to be. Tanaka-senpai is resilient.”

“...Yeah.”

“When you were out there… I told him not to go. I’m sorry, senpai.”

“It’s fine, Kageyama. I would’ve held him back, too. He’s lost too much blood, but at least it’s starting to clot.”

“I told him that, but-”

“Stop talking about me like I’m not here,” Shouyou huffed, groggy. The human-like shapes solidified into Nishinoya and Kageyama as they knelt beside him. “And thanks for nothing, by the way, Kageyama.”

“I held them off, jackass. Aren’t you wondering why they didn’t chase you?” His partner’s voice was rough, but not unkind. Shouyou noticed a trickle of dried blood under his nostrils - a telltale sign of ability overuse.

Shouyou’s argument died in his throat. “I sort of… Assumed… That they just couldn’t see Noya-senpai while he’s running.”

The explanation sounded weak, even to him.

“They weren’t trying to kill us, anyway.” Nishinoya stood, his expression uncharacteristically serious. “Didn’t you hear them, Shouyou? ‘Don’t shoot,’ or whatever. They want us for something.”

“A little disconcerting,” Kageyama murmured, raising his fist to his cradle his chin. “What for?”

“Don’t know.” Their senpai risked a glance outside of the alleyway. Aside from the man Shouyou had taken down with a kick, the soldiers had dispersed. “But thanks for stepping in, Shouyou, Kageyama. I couldn’t risk running with their guns on me.” A small smile broke across Nishinoya’s face as he studied his kouhai. “But really, you did good.”

Shouyou grinned weakly. “Thanks, Noya-senpai.”

Nishinoya placed a hand on Shouyou’s head. “You saved me. I owe you one.”

The redhead’s eyelids fluttered shut. “...Was nothing.”

“‘Nothing?’ Shouyou, so modest! Who are you?!” Nishinoya ruffled his kouhai’s hair. The action was both friendly and borne of the necessity of keeping the injured super awake. “Did you see that kick? It was all, _baam_ ! _Gwah_! I can’t believe it, it was like watching a master in action.”

“It _was_ pretty awesome, right?” Shouyou allowed himself to be jostled. “Like... _bwah_! I’ve never done a kick that good outside of practice.”

“You’re a champ, now!”

Shouyou acknowledged Nishinoya’s praise with a weak smile.

Kageyama watched the exchange with a detached sort of interest. They were still in danger, and they had to run, but for a moment, the three relished in the comfortable silence. It was a simple joy, one that comes with camaraderie. For a short while, they gathered their bearings.

It was Shouyou who broke the silence.

“So, what next?”

Nishinoya and Kageyama looked at each other, then back at Shouyou.

“I guess the best course of action would be to sneak out of here as fast as we can, try to find the rest of the task force, and regroup… But I can’t carry both of you.” Nishinoya ran his hand through his hair. “I actually doubt I could carry Kageyama at all. I’m drained, now.” A little spark of electricity danced along his arm, fluttering off the tip of his finger and dying out, as if proving his point.

“We could use my fields to float through the camp, up really high,” Shouyou suggested, waving his uninjured arm in the air. “Like flying, or something.”

“Wouldn’t they see the circles of red on the ground?” Kageyama countered, meeting his partner’s glare with one of his own.

“It was just an idea,” the redhead muttered, crossing his arms.

“We’ll run, together.” Nishinoya decided. “We’ll keep an eye out for soldiers, and if we see them, you redirect them, Kageyama. Worse comes to worst, we use Shouyou’s gravity to go right over their heads. Can you two handle that?”

The younger supers nodded, resolute.

“Okay then. We’re off!”

They stood as one, Nishinoya helping Shouyou to his feet. Kageyama turned to the entrance of the alley and froze.

There had only been one soldier left when the men in white dispersed. Shouyou’s kick was strong, but evidently, not strong enough.

Humans have a natural aversion to anything them brings them fear or pain, and the soldier - he was afraid.

He was in pain, and out of his depth. He was _afraid_ , commands be damned.

A shot rang out, and their senpai crumpled to the floor. Before Kageyama could register what was happening, pain erupted from his shoulder, indescribable, stinging and burning like an animal had burrowed into his skin. The force of the bullet threw him backwards.

Shouyou watched in horror as Kageyama stumbled, grasping for purchase before his knees buckled. He reached forward to help, but grabbed too late. Kageyama’s head met the pavement with a sickening crack.

And although Shouyou’s own blood was smeared across his body, it didn’t hurt him the way it hurt to see his friends on the ground, his teammates, fallen.

He distantly came to the conclusion that he would never again think that his gravitational fields looked like puddles of blood, because the reality was so much worse.

As the soldier raised his gun again, Shouyou realized he was crying.

He pulled the trigger, and Shouyou released a blood-curdling scream. The gun fell to the ground with a clatter, and his vision faded to black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!! For those of you reading or rereading this and noticing that it changed from a multichap to a oneshot, I'm sorry for the change! This fic was originally a long story I had planned out, but school got in the way and I got sucked into some other fandoms. I'd like to turn this into a series, I think?? maybe? I have other chapters written and I'll definitely put them up at some point. for now, this will stay a oneshot.
> 
> thank you for understanding <3 I'm sorry for the cliffhanger! just know that everything WILL be okay with this fic - I love my happy endings. xo much love <3

**Author's Note:**

> hi all, new readers and old!! so for those of you who may have read this before, you've probably noticed that this fic has been changed from a multichap to a oneshot. I wanted to upload regularly, but school and other obligations got in the way. if you were invested in the story, don't worry! I've decided to turn this fic into a superhero series that will eventually be released in full. I have other chapters written that I'd like to include, so check that out when they go up, if you're interested!
> 
> thanks for understanding, and thank you for reading! much love xo


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